Russia is close to completing a phased shipment of drones, medicine and food to Iran, according to western intelligence reports that detail Moscow’s efforts to keep its embattled partner fighting.
Senior Iranian and Russian officials began secretly discussing delivering drones days after Israel and the US attacked Tehran, two officials briefed on the intelligence said. The processing of deliveries began in early March and was expected to be completed by the end of the month.
Russia has close ties with Tehran and has provided its ally with crucial support including satellite imagery, targeting data and intelligence support, people familiar with the matter said.
The shipments of weaponry such as drones would be the first evidence Moscow has been willing to provide lethal support to Iran since the start of the war.
Asked about Moscow sending drones to Iran, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said: “There are a lot of fakes going around right now. One thing is true — we are continuing our dialogue with the Iranian leadership.”
A senior western official said Moscow was stepping in to shore up not only the Iranians’ fighting capabilities but also to underwrite the broader political stability of Tehran’s regime.
In public Moscow has highlighted provision of humanitarian aid since the conflict began, saying last week that it has sent more than 13 tonnes of medicine to Iran through Azerbaijan and is planning to continue the shipments.
Iran has made firing one-way attack drones across the Middle East a core element of its military strategy. It has fired more than 3,000 such drones, which it is able to produce cheaply, since the outbreak of fighting.